Christchurch attack: Visa issued to mother of martyred Naeem Rasheed

ISLAMABAD (92 News) – The mother of martyred Naeem Rasheed – who resisted and tried to overpower terrorist during an attack on Masjid Al-Noor by terrorist in Christchurch – has been issued visa to travel to New Zealand. In a statement, Foreign Minister (FM) Shah Mehmood Qureshi confirmed that visa to the mother of martyred Naeem Rashid has been issued so that she can attend last rituals of her son in New Zealand. He also said that the government is facilitating relatives of Pakistani citizens, martyred in the New Zealand terrorist attack, in getting visa to travel to Christchurch to attend funerals of their loved ones. FM Qureshi said that the mother of Naeem Rashid had expressed her desire to attend last rituals of her son and the government fully cooperated in that regard. He said we are in contact with family members of other martyrs and all possible facilitates will be provided to them. Shah Mehmood Qureshi said a crisis management cell has been established at the Foreign Office regarding the New Zealand incident so that any difficulties to the deceased families can be addressed at the earliest. It is pertinent here to mention that in the horrific video, documented live by the terrorist, Rashid was seen rushing to the gunman without a weapon in a bid to avert the attacker with just his bare hands even while his own son Talha got shot at the mosque. He was left badly wounded after he launched himself at the shooter in a bid to protect fellow worshippers. He was rushed to hospital following the attack, but died after few hours. Naeem Rashid, who moved from Abbottabad to New Zealand to work as a teacher, was at the Al Noor Mosque in Christchurch with his 21-year-old son, Talha Naeem, for Friday prayers. Both of them passed away in the terrorist attack, which took the lives of 47 others at two separate mosques.